Li Ge'er and Mao Ge'er rushed out and hugged their father tightly when they saw him, just like naughty children who had been bullied.

"Dad, sob, I'm scared. These people are bullying us. I want to go home. I miss Grandma!"

"Dad, they jumped in through the window with knives. It was terrifying."

Lu Zong and Jia Xu, who were right behind them, slipped and almost fell to their knees.

Half of the blood on their feet was the work of those two lads.

They're clearly two tigers, but they turn into docile lambs when they see their dad?!

Li Zhensheng hugged his son and comforted him repeatedly, "Don't be afraid, Dad is outside. If I hear anything bad, I'll bring people up here."

"You did a good job just now. When it comes to fighting for your lives, you have to be ruthless. Only dead people can guarantee that they won't hurt others."

By this time, the officers had already searched the house and arrested the young waiter.

It turns out that the young man's role as an inside man was not accidental; the gang of thieves lived next door to him!

Knowing that Jiaren and his men were staying here, the thieves took the opportunity to recruit a young waiter as an inside man.

Officer Wang immediately returned to the government office to seek help, and in the early morning light, he ran off to raid the thieves' hideout.

Inside the room, the four corpses were carried downstairs.

The shopkeeper, who had just woken up, fainted again upon seeing this...

He really didn't want to soberly face this miserable situation.

Li Zhensheng booked three rooms at another inn diagonally opposite. He and the officials waited there last night, keeping a close watch.

At this moment, he took all the children with him.

They brought clean clothes from the ship, and the Jiaren brothers all changed into them.

Lu Zong and Jia Xu did not participate in the fight, and their bodies were not dirty.

The soles of the shoes were stained with blood, so the servant took them away and cleaned them before we wore them anyway.

Just as he finished his work, Liu Yang came over with a smile, carrying a food box with several bowls of white porridge, vegetarian buns, and a plate of pickled cucumbers.

He was waiting outside last night, and when he heard that everything was alright, he went to buy breakfast.

Although his surname is Liu, he and the Li brothers have been inseparable since childhood.

At this moment, both Li Ge'er and Mao Ge'er ran over to hug him.

He said, “I know you guys were really impressive last night. You’ll have plenty to brag about for half a year when you get home. You guys eat first. I’m going to tell Jiayi. He’s guarding the fleet, and he’s probably worried about this place. He’s so anxious his eyebrows are practically on fire.”

Only then did Li Ge'er and Mao Ge'er release the people, and Liu Yang quickly rushed back to the dock.

Lu Zong and Jia Xu were also invited to the table for a meal.

It was quite a thrilling night, exhausting both their minds and bodies. After the crisis passed, the boys' stomachs were growling with hunger.

So they gathered around the congee and steamed buns, and began to eat heartily.

Li Zhensheng sat to one side, watching them with a smile, neither urging them nor asking any questions.

Only after the boys had eaten and drunk their fill and the fear in their eyes had faded did he say, "Jiaren, tell me the whole story from beginning to end, don't miss a single detail."

Jiaren nodded, continuing the conversation from the moment they disembarked until just now.

Lu Zong and Jia Xu felt ashamed upon hearing this.

Jia Xu was the one who started this big trouble by flaunting his wealth.

Lu Zong agreed to let the secret guards take action, but in the end, he let the Jia Ren brothers bear all the danger.

Both of them quickly apologized, and they were very sincere.

Li Zhensheng didn't blame them, nor could he blame them.

After all, they were all students of the academy, just colleagues, not members of the Li family.

He waved his hand, exchanged a few polite words, then turned to Jiaren and asked coldly, "Have you reflected on your actions and realized where you mishandled this matter?"

Jiaren nodded, stood up and stood respectfully beside his uncle, and said, "Uncle, I have reflected on my actions. I was reckless in taking my brothers into danger."

"Yesterday, knowing that this group might retaliate, I should have taken my brothers back to the fleet instead of staying behind. I thought we had weapons and rashly confronted a group of outlaws."

"Firstly, I am not familiar with them and cannot know them well, so the countermeasures I formulate will inevitably be subject to change."

"Secondly, I shouldn't have placed my greatest reliance on others. If something goes wrong with that reliance, my life would be in jeopardy."

"I will never be so reckless again. I will prioritize safety and act prudently."

Li Zhensheng's expression softened considerably. He nodded slightly and said, "To be honest, I can't blame you. It's inevitable when you're young and impetuous."

"Back then, I was just as reckless and arrogant, insisting on traveling and studying abroad. I wandered around for more than ten years, causing my family to suffer."

"But you must always remember that you are the eldest grandson of our family's third generation. The family's reputation depends on you, and your six younger brothers and one younger sister all depend on you as their eldest brother."

"Your decision could very well affect the rise and fall of the entire family. Therefore, we don't expect you to achieve great things; we just want you to learn the word 'stability'."

"Think thrice before you act, plan carefully before you move, and never take risks without absolute certainty. Remember today's lesson; let it never happen again!"

"Uncle, I've got it. I'll never do it again." Jiaren bowed his head and solemnly agreed.

Li Ge'er and Mao Ge'er couldn't bear to see their eldest brother get scolded, so they quickly stepped forward to apologize together.

Li Ge said, "Father, I was also wrong. I shouldn't have let my eldest brother take the blame alone."

Cat Brother was also jumping up and down, shouting, "Dad, it's all my fault! I'm the one who made my older brother stay to watch the dragon boat race!"

Li Zhensheng glared at his two sons and scolded them, "Even if you don't come forward, I won't forget you. Li Ge'er went too far yesterday. If you had kicked that fake corpse up, you would have given him some money to appease him."

"These martial arts figures wouldn't be so shameful as to try to wipe you out, so this disaster wouldn't have happened!"

"And Cat Brother, you insisted on coming along this time. Whether it's good or bad, you have to grit your teeth and hold on, and you can't say anything about going home again."

“You’re all grown up now. You need to learn to take responsibility for your choices. Your brothers have been doing their best to protect you. You can’t take their protection for granted, and you can’t hide behind them forever, understand?”

Both Li Ge'er and Mao Ge'er shrank their necks and nodded quickly, not daring to utter a single word in their defense.

Lu Zong and Jia Xu listened from the side, feeling both guilty and envious.

Their fathers and elders would also teach them, but they wouldn't break it down and analyze it so meticulously.

Although Li Zhensheng had a cold face and a stern tone, anyone could hear the care and love in his voice.

Li Zhensheng, unaware of their thoughts, continued instructing his own children, "Tell me, how should this matter be handled?"

Both Li Ge'er and Mao Ge'er looked at Jia Ren, appearing to follow their elder brother's lead.

Jiaren thought for a moment and then said, "If the yamen arrests someone, they'll definitely be able to find out something, which would be a great achievement. We can then smooth things over with our family."

"As for the inn, we'll compensate them with fifty taels of silver. After all, their staff acted as an inside man, letting the wolf in, so they were also at fault. This fifty taels is purely out of a sense of morality, to lend a helping hand."

Li Zhensheng nodded, about to speak, when Officer Wang came over, bursting into laughter and bowing to express his gratitude.

Served at midnight~~